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Trying to figure things out

I’m a Virgo at Heart

…I just have weird priorities.

What I mean is, I want things to be organized and logical, I want to be in control, and I love planners, school supplies, lists, scheduals and spreadsheets.

But! The second life gets just a little too stressful – which is a lot of the time – all of those things just go shit. 😀 Which is why, as you can see from this page, organization is one of my main goals right now.

Disorganization really gets me down. For one thing, I don’t function well in that kind of state. I’m not a fly-by-the-seat-of-my-pants kind of gal. It takes me to overwhelmed land really quickly. Then, I feel bad about myself for getting myself into the chaotic mess, and that’s when the negative self-talk comes in.

So basically, disorganization, for me, is a one-way street to depression and anxiety.

Thanks to one of my favorite bloggers, I got the idea to read Organizing for Dummies. I’m impatient, so I ordered the mini version for Kindle from amazon (only $0.99! Sorry, not an official commercial, but whoa!) and it only took a couple of hours to get through/take notes.

There are WAY too many things that I want to organize. But here are the highlights of what I took away from the book, that I’m going to put into action today.

Mission Statement: My mission is to get organized so that I can reduce my stress level and become more efficient with my time both at home, with chores and projects, and at work.

Where to start? I picked the “hot spot” option, which is the most annoying area. For me that’s the bookshelf in my bedroom. It is SO gross and over populated with crap I never use. Which leads me to…

Setting a time-frame = start today, finish one week from today

The three D’s: have three bags/boxes with me when I sit down to organize the bookshelf. Distribute (for things that you are keeping but are out of place), Donate, and Dump

What to W-A-S-T-E:

Worthwhile?

Again? (Will I use it again)

Somewhere else? (If I need to use it again, can I get it somewhere else?)

Toss? (Is it a big deal to toss it?)

Entire thing? (Do I need all of it, or can I just keep some of it?

Where to P-L-A-C-E it:

Purge

Like items with like items

Access items logically and easily

Contain items properly (boxes? Stacks? drawers?)

Evaluate when you’re finishing up to see what could be better.

I learned many other things that will help me with maximizing my time at work, keeping lists, keeping my desk clean, etc. This is just the information for today’s project. Here’s a before picture of the terrible state of the bookshelf! Can’t wait to show you the rest of the process, and the completed project.